Probation comes to an end for University of Louisville

By BRUCE SCHREINER -

12/5/17 4:46 PM

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Probation has been lifted for the University of Louisville a year after Kentucky’s governor fired the school’s board and escalated a period of turmoil when other issues came to the surface.

University leaders said Tuesday that the school had resolved issues related to its governance, administration and finances in persuading an accrediting agency to remove its probationary status.

The decision by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to drop the probation trimmed another problem off the list for UofL administrators as they try to steer the school past a tumultuous period. They have dealt with fallout from a series of problems including the scandal-plagued men’s basketball program and mismanagement by the school’s investment arm.

Interim UofL President Greg Postel, who led efforts to pull the school out of probation, told reporters in a conference call that the decision was a “big relief for the entire university community” and was due to a “great team effort” and a lot of work in the past year.

Belle Wheelan, president of the accrediting agency, said in a statement that UofL officials “worked hard to show that they cared about the university enough to make sure that there were no clouds hanging over them anymore.”

Postel said the university’s accreditation problems began when Gov. Matt Bevin unilaterally fired the UofL board of trustees and appointed a new one.

Bevin claimed the old board was dysfunctional. Postel on Tuesday credited the state Legislature with passing measures that cleared up legal concerns about the governor’s action.

Concerns also were raised about UofL’s relationship with the university’s foundation.

If UofL had not resolved the concerns, it risked losing accreditation, which would have meant, among other things, its students would not have been eligible for state or federal financial aid.

UofL officials said campus life for students, faculty and staff was unaffected as the school responded to the sanction. Postel said publicity about UofL’s probationary status appeared to have a minimal impact based on student applications, enrollment and faculty retention.

“Certainly it’s not anything that the university would wish for, but all I can say is I hope those same readers understand how serious we were about bringing the issue to conclusion as quickly as we could and we’re ready to move on,” Postel said.

Following Bevin’s decision to replace UofL’s governing board, state Attorney General Andy Beshear, a Democrat, sued to block the Republican governor’s action.

The GOP-led Legislature responded by changing the law. The state Supreme Court ultimately ruled the new law made the issue moot and dismissed the case.

Postel said the lawmakers’ actions also alleviated concerns by the accrediting group.

“So the concern around that issue that had been raised … became moot, and in essence that resolved that piece of the accreditation dilemma,” Postel said.

Bevin had maintained the university was never in danger of losing its accreditation.

Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers, who played a key role in the legislature’s response to the university’s probation, praised Bevin on Tuesday for recognizing that UofL needed a “fresh start, which meant appointing fresh faces to its Board of Trustees.”

The foundation underwent fundamental changes since those revelations. It is run by a new board of directors, and it adopted reforms including a line-item budget and a ban preventing UofL’s president from also running the foundation. UofL’s former president, James Ramsey, held both roles.

Ramsey, whose long tenure as UofL president was ultimately dogged by scandal, resigned last year.

The AP is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, as a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members, it can maintain its single-minded focus on newsgathering and its commitment to the highest standards of objective, accurate journalism.